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December 16, 2015

Repurposed Antique Sewing Machine

It's about the time of year when I start to freak out because I vowed to have all my Christmas shopping done, but instead I am still trying desperately to break away from work and do any shopping at all. I hope you're in a better spot than I am, I swear this happens every year! I don't think I told you, but we will be taking a Christmas cruise with my family this year. 8 Days in Mexico...8 days away from the business, and phones, and the Internet. Of course I will miss you, but I cannot wait for the trip. In the meantime, feast your eyes upon this gorgeous makeover from the vibrant Larissa, at Prodigal Pieces.

She decided to restore a very rusty and worn sewing machine, although from looking at the "after" you would never know it! Larissa is really talented and used variety of tools to whip this piece out. Check out the condition of the piece when she found it.

1.] You've got to rehab the sewing machine base, if in fact it's all beat up like this one. Larissa used her handy Dremel with a polishing bit to remove all the rust. It's a big job, but will be so rewarding when complete! You can paint the base at this point, but make sure you use a paint with rust control, to keep it from coming right back.

2.] Cut/Plane/Sand the top: The top of this sewing machine was beyond fixing. But if you have one that you're restoring you can either sand the existing finish and apply your favorite weathering wood stain, Reclamation is perfect to get that vintage look.

If the top is beyond repair, like Larissa's, then you can do as she did and cut a new one. Larissa was fortunate to have a barn full of old wood to choose from. I know, how jealous are we?! Above you can see the rough shape the 100 year old wood was in. She will walk you though for to remove all that dirt and grime.

Larissa cut the wood top out with a circular saw, and then used her handheld planer to remove 100 years of grime. A planer will save your like a hour of sanding and give your a nice flat top. She then used a circular sander to finish the top, making it ready for stain. You want to sand with 80 grit sandpaper, to make sure the wood was open and ready to accept the stain.

3.] Now that the wood is prepared, it's time to bring back its vintage look. To apply Reclamation, you simply wipe the product onto the wood, applying a heavy coat. Then allow the stain to dry naturally. Do NOT wipe back off.

4.] Finally, you can topcoat the dry wood, to give it better protection. You can use whichever topcoat you like, but we have found that White Maintenance Oil would give a nice, light patina to this wood. However, Larissa choose to use Polyurethane.

Can you believe the before and after with this project? I think Larissa killed it, what about you? Is this DIY too many steps for you? Or would you give it a try?

Don't forget, all Weatherwood projects are featured on the Weatherwood site in our beautiful project gallery. Make sure to stop in and show Larissa some love! She is a fast growing blogger with a devoted following and you'll be glad you found her. Follow her on: FB | Insta | Hometalk | Pin | Tweet